Real wedding: Gold and sparkle styled for the country

Rose & Ben: The proposal – Ben knew very well that Rose was no fan of surprises, so rather than an elaborate proposal, the couple decided together that they were ready to take the plunge. “We were up in Norfolk one weekend and realised that was where we wanted to get married,” Rose remembers. “We found the perfect venue very quickly.” Photography by Katherine Ashdown

Rose & Ben: A sprinkling of gold dust – “We had fun with gold glitter to celebrate the fact it was a wintery wedding and to keep it feeling youthful,” Rose says.

Rose & Ben: A sprinkling of gold dust –

Rose & Ben: The wedding dress – Rose chose Monique Lhuillier’s Azure gown from Browns Bride in London. “I loved that it was traditional but a little unusual,” she says. “The lace was romantic and the tulle helped it to feel more informal.”

Rose & Ben: The shoes – “I have tiny feet, so I bought my shoes from Pretty Small Shoes,” the bride says.

Rose & Ben: Bridesmaid style – “I saw a wedding in our photographer’s portfolio with only one bridesmaid and thought that was a lovely idea, as we wanted our wedding to be intimate and relaxed,” Rose explains. Best girl Melody wore a dress from Monsoon.

Rose & Ben: The bouquets – Rose carried a bouquet of white hydrangeas, ranunculus, and Lily of the Valley in her bouquet, while her bridesmaid Melody had antique pink roses, created by florist Victoria Arrow Smith.

Rose & Ben: The groom and ushers – Ben wore a bespoke suit with the couple’s initials sewn into the inside pocket (and QPR into the collar!). The groomsmen wore pale gold ties and spotty socks from J.Crew.

Rose & Ben: The groom’s buttonhole – Ben wore a Lily of the Valley and rosemary buttonhole wrapped in twine.

Rose & Ben: The ceremony – The couple had a traditional church service at a tiny rural church.

Rose & Ben: The ceremony – “We visit Tuscany regularly and wanted to bring a little bit of Italy to the church, so we hired olive trees to line the aisle and kept two as a memento for our garden at home,” Rose says.

Rose & Ben: Orders of service – “We loved the juxtaposition of metallics and natural materials so chose kraft papers, hessians and twine with accents of whites and gold,” Rose says of their theme. Kraft paper orders of service were in keeping with the look.

Rose & Ben: The ceremony – “My niece Scout was our flower girl. She was only a year old at the time and was just about walking, but not quite, so she had a little cart to help her up the aisle. Everyone said it was the cutest start to a wedding.”

Rose & Ben: The rings –

Rose & Ben: The wedding car –

Rose & Ben: The photographer – “We saw Katherine Ashdown‘s work and fell in love with it – it’s always so full of light,” Rose says.

Rose & Ben: The photographer – “Katherine also helped us to get some really fun and quirky shots.”

Rose & Ben: The venue – “We chose The Hoste, Burnham Market in Norfolk immediately without even looking at any others,” Rose says. “It was the perfect, relaxed venue that we wanted. We were very lucky.”

Rose & Ben: The venue – The couple hired floating lanterns to string across the courtyard – beautiful both by day and at night.

Rose & Ben: The details – A bike was decorated with gold balloons to direct guests to the reception.

Rose & Ben: The table plan – The couple named their tables after their favourite ski runs in Colorado. The plan was written on the groom’s mum’s vintage mirror.

Rose & Ben: The table names – Table name signs were made using cardboard decoupage letters decorated with gold leaf.

Rose & Ben: The flowers – Tables were decorated with floral centre pieces at different levels.

Rose & Ben: The flowers –

Rose & Ben: The tables – “Ben’s dad is the political cartoonist for The Times and he created wonderful word-play place names for each guest, which we put on mini easels,” Rose says. “Mine was a painting of a rose and a B with two rooks.”

Rose & Ben: The cootie-catchers – The couple scattered bespoke cootie-catchers on the tables featuring wedding-related questions, conversation starters and details of the day hidden inside.

Rose & Ben: The cootie-catchers –

Rose & Ben: The cootie-catchers –

Rose & Ben: The photo booth –

Rose & Ben: The photo booth –

Rose & Ben: The photo booth –

Rose & Ben: The photo booth –

Rose & Ben: The cakes – Rose made the cakes herself, each one accented with white sugar roses and hydrangeas and finished with gold leaf and ribbon. Honeycomb paper balls hung from the ceiling to add an extra dimension to the room.

Rose & Ben: The cakes –

Rose & Ben: The dessert table –

Rose & Ben: The dessert table –

Rose & Ben: The cigar bar – “We created a mini cigar bar with a sign saying ‘Benny’s Cigar Bar’ and made bespoke cigar wraps with our names on,” Rose says. ‘They were a hit with the men in the evening.”

Rose & Ben: The cigar bar –

Rose & Ben: The cigar bar –

Rose & Ben: The treats –

Rose & Ben: The treats –

Rose & Ben: The treats –

Rose & Ben: The treats –

Rose & Ben: The music – To get guests involved in the entertainment, the couple made song-request cards to match the gold theme.

Rose & Ben: The first dance – “We had pianist Michael Moore from Kensington Piano Bar play ‘We Found Each Other in the Dark’ by City and Colour, which had long been a favourite of ours with special meaning,” Rose says.

Rose & Ben: The piñata – “Most of all we wanted our wedding to be fun, with lots of lively touches and surprises to make our guests feel special,” Rose explains.

Rose & Ben: Temporary tattoos – “Guests loved these – especially after a few drinks in the evening!”

Rose & Ben: The midnight snack – Topping it off was an evening treat of milk and cookies.

Rose & Ben: The evening – How amazing did that courtyard look illuminated with lanterns?!

Rose & Ben: Magic moments – For the evening Rose changed into a second dress by Phase Eight. The party lasted into the small hours and, as the couple admit, was pretty raucous by the end!